Bolens 124-848L401 User Manual
vaRD-MaN
OUTDOOR POWER EQUIPMENT
for all seasons
21"
ROTARY
Owner’s
Manual
• SET-UP
• OPERATION
• MAINTENANCE
IMPORTANT:
Read Safety Rules and Instructions Carefully
MOWERS
Thank you for purchasing an American-built product.
(Self-Propelled Model Shown)
Model Numbers
114-808L401
124-848L401
WARNING: This unit is equipped with an internal combustion engine and should not be used on or near any unimproved for
est-covered, brush-covered or grass-covered land unless the engine’s exhaust system is equipped with a spark arrester
meeting applicable local or state laws (if any). If a spark arrester is used, it should be maintained in effective working order by
the operator.
In the State of California the above is required by law (Section 4442 of the California Public Resources Code). Other states
may have similar laws. Federal laws apply on federal lands. A spark arrester for the muffler is available through your nearest
engine authorized service dealer or contact the service department, P.O. Box 368022, Cleveland, Ohio 44136-9722.
PRINTED IN U.S.A.
FORM NO. 770-861OJ
IM PO RTANT
THIS SYMBOL POINTS OUT IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS WHICH, IF NOT FOLLOWED, COULD ENDANGER THE PERSONAL
SAFETY AND/OR PROPERTY OF YOURSELF AND OTHERS. READ AND FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS IN THIS MANUAL BEFORE
▲
ATTEMPTING TO OPERATE YOUR LAWN MOWER. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE INSTRUCTIONS MAY RESULT IN PERSONAL
INJURY. WHEN YOU SEE THIS SYMBOL— ^ HEED ITS WARNING.
Your lawn mower was bu It to be operated according to the rules for safe operation in this manual. As
DANGER: with any type of power eq jipment, careiessness or error on the part of the operator can resuit in serious
A
TRAiNiNG
1. Read this owner’s guide carefuiiy in its entirety befom attempt
ing to assembie or operate this machine. Be compie eiy famiiiar with the controis and the proper use of this mach ne before
operating it. Keep this manual in a safe place for f Jture and
regular reference and for ordering replacement parts.
2. Your rotary mower is a precision piece of power ejuipment,
not a plaything. Therefore, exercise extreme caution at all
times. Your unit has been designed to perform one job: to
mow grass. Do not use it for any other purpose.
3. Never allow children under 14 years old to operatt a power
mower. Children 14 years old and over should onl/ operate
mower under close parental supervision. Only penions well
acquainted with these rules of safe operation snould be
allowed to use your mower.
4. Keep the area of operation clear of all persons, p; rticularly
small children and pets. Stop engine when they ire in the
vicinity of your mower to help prevent blade contact ir thrown
object injury. Although the area of operation should be com
pletely cleared of foreign objects, an object may tave been
overlooked and could be accidentally thrown by the mower in
any direction and cause serious personal injury to thf operator
or any others allowed in the area.
PREPARATION
1. Thoroughly inspect the area where the equipmeni is to be
used. Remove ail stones, sticks, wire, bones and oth sr foreign
objects which could be picked up and thrown by the mower in
any direction and cause serious personal injury to tht operator
or any others allowed in the area. Plan your mowing lattern to
avoid discharge of material toward roads, sidewalks,
bystanders and the like.
2. Always wear safety glasses or eye shields during opi¡ration or
while performing an adjustment or repair, to protect (yes from
foreign objects that may be thrown from the machi le in any
direction.
3. Wear sturdy, rough-soled work shoes and close-fitti ig slacks
and shirts. Shirts and pants that cover the arms and legs and
steel-toed shoes are recommended. Do not wear locse fitting
clothes or jewelry. They can be caught in moving paits. Never
operate a unit in bare feet, sandals, or sneakers.
4. Before working with gasoline, extinguish all cigarettes, cigars,
pipes and other sources of ignition. Check the fuel level before
starting the engine. Gasoline is an extremely flammtble fuel.
Do not fill the gasoline tank indoors, while the engire is run
ning, or until engine has been allowed to cool for at least two
minutes after running. Replace gasoline cap securely and wipe
off any spilled gasoline before starting the engine ; s it may
cause afire or explosion.
5. Disengage the self-propelled mechanism or drive i lutch on
units so equipped before starting the engine.
6. The blade control handle is a safety device. Never a tempt to
bypass its operation. Doing so makes the safety device inoper
ative and may result in personal injury through contac: with the
rotating blade. The blade control handle must operate easily in
both directions and automatically return to the disengaged
position when released.
7. Never attempt to make a wheel or cutting height acjustment
while the engine is running.
8. Never operate the mower in wet grass. Always be sute of your
footing. A slip and fall can cause serious personal injury. Keep
a firm hold on the handle and walk, never run. Mm / only in
daylight or in good artificial light.
injury, if you violate any o1 these rules, you may cause serious injury to yourseif or others.
SAFE OPERATION PRACTICES
A
9. For your safety, use the slope gauge included as part of this
manual to measure slopes before operating this unit on a
sloped or hilly area. If the slope is greater than 15° as shown
on the slope gauge, do not operate this unit on that area or
serious injury could result.
OPERATION
1. Do not change the engine governor settings or overspeed the
engine. Excessive engine speeds are dangerous.
2. Do not put hands or feet near or under rotating parts. Keep
clear of the discharge opening at all times as the rotating blade
can cause injury.
3. Stop the blade when crossing gravel drives, walks or roads.
4. After striking a foreign object, stop the engine, remove the wire
from the spark plug, and thoroughly inspect the mower for any
damage. Repair the damage before restarting and operating the
mower.
5. If the equipment should start to vibrate abnormally, stop the
engine and check immediately for the cause. Vibration is gen
erally a warning of trouble.
6. Shut the engine off and wait until the blade comes to a com
plete stop before removing the grass catcher or unclogging the
chute. The cutting blade continues to rotate for a few seconds
after the engine is shut off. Never place any part of the body in
the blade area until you are sure the blade has stopped rotat
ing.
7. Before cleaning, repairing or inspecting, make certain the blade
and all moving parts have stopped. Disconnect the spark plug
wire, and keep the wire away from the spark plug to prevent
accidental starting.
8. Do not run the engine indoors.
9. Never cut grass by pulling mower toward you. Mow across the
face of slopes, never up-and-down. Exercise extreme caution
when changing direction on slopes. Do not mow excessively
steep slopes. Always be sure of your footing. A slip and fall can
cause serious personal injury.
10. Never operate mower without proper guards, plates or other
safety protective devices in place.
11. Muffler and engine become hot and can cause a burn. Do not
touch.
12. Do not operate this mower with the chute door open, unless
the complete grass catcher or chute deflector is properly
mounted on the mower.
MAINTENANCE AND STORAGE
1. Check the blade and engine mounting bolts at frequent inter
vals for proper tightness. Also visually inspect blade for dam
age (e.g. bent, cracked). Replace with blade which meets origi
nal equipment specifications.
2. Keep all nuts, bolts, and screws tight to be sure the equipment
is in safe working condition.
3. Never store the mower with gasoline in the tank or gas con
tainers inside of a building where fumes may reach an open
flame or spark (e.g. gas hot water heater). Allow the engine to
cool before storing in any enclosure.
4. To reduce fire hazard, keep the engine free of grass, leaves and
excessive oil.
5. Check the grass catcher bag frequently for wear or deteriora
tion. Replace a worn or damaged bag immediately. For safety
protection, replace only with new bag meeting original equip
ment specifications.
SET-UP INSTRUCTIONS
IMPORTANT: This unit is shipped WITHOUT
GASOLINE or OIL in the engine. Be certain to ser
vice engine with gasoiine and oii before operating
your mower.
NOTE: Reference to right or ieft hand side of the
mower is observed from the operating position.
TO REMOVE MOWER FROM CARTON
Remove the carton inserts (if any). Remove the loose
parts which are in the carton, lift the mower from the
carton, or cut the corners of the carton and roll the
mower out.
HOW TO SET-UP YOUR LAWN MOWER
(Refer to Figure 1)
1. Disconnect the spark plug wire and move it away
from the spark plug.
2. Remove any cardboard pieces which may be
between the upper and lower handles for shipping
purposes. If there is any packaging (plastic or
cardboard) around the upper handle, remove it.
3. For shipping purposes your mower is set with the
wheels in the lowest cutting height position. Raise
the mower to the highest setting for assembly of
handle.
4. Remove the hairpin clips which are in the weld
pins on the handle mounting brackets.
Lift the handle and attach by placing the bottom
holes in the lower handle over the weld pins on
the handle mounting brackets. Make certain the
lower handle is seated securely into the handle
mounting brackets.
Pull up on the upper handle to raise it into the
6.
operating position. Tighten the hand knobs on
each side of the handle.
NOTE: Your mower is shipped with the handle in the
higher height position. If you wish to lower the height of
the handle, refer to the Adjustment Section at this time.
7. Secure the handle assembly by placing the hair
pin clips in the inner hole on weld pins.
8. The rope guide and wing nut are attached to the
starter rope, on top of the engine. Remove the
wing nut from rope guide. Remove the rope guide
from the starter rope.
With the spark plug wire disconnected and
9.
grounded, hold the blade control handle against
the upper handle, and pull the starter rope out of
the engine. Hold the rope guide as shown so the
opening in the rope guide is toward the front of
mower. Slip the rope guide around the starter
rope and into the right side of lower handle using
the hole shown. Secure using the wing nut.
Slip the starter rope into the rope guide on the
10.
side of the rear catcher panel assembly.
Make certain all nuts and bolts are tightened
11
securely.
Rope
Guide
Starter
Rope
Rope
Guide
FIGURE 1.
Upper
Handle
Rope
Guide
Lower
Handle
Starter
Rope
Handle
Mounting
Bracket
Rope
Guide
Rear
Discharge
Chute
Blade
Control
Handle
Hand
Knob
Rear
Catcher
Panel
Assembly
Spark
Plug
Handle
Mounting
Bracket
Lower
Handle
Hairpin
Clip in
Inner Hole
Weld
Pin
TO ATTACH BAG TO MOWER
1. Hold the chute door on the catcher panel open as
shown in figure 2.
2. Slide the frame of the grass catcher down into the
channels on each side of the mower. The hooks
on the frame go over the panel on the discharge
------
chute. See figure 2.
To remove the grass catcher, lift the grass catcher
straight up.
TO CONVERT MOWER TO SIDE DISCHARGE
To convert your mower to a side discharge unit, pro
ceed as follows.
1. Remove the rear discharge chute assembly by
removing two wing nuts. Lift up on the two bottom
corners of the discharge chute assembly, and
slide it off the deck.
2. Attach the side chute deflector by first placing it
over the rear bolt in the side of the deck. Then
slide the notch in the top of the deflector around
the shoulder bolt on top of the deck. Slide the
notch in the side of the deflector around the front
------
bolt in the side of the deck. See figure 3.
FIGURE 3.
3. Secure the front of the chute deflector to the bolt
on the side of the deck with one wing nut. See fig
ure 3. Secure the back of the chute deflector in
— the same manner. See figure 4.
TO CONVERT MOWER TO A MULCHER
To use your mower as a mulcher, proceed as follows.
1. Remove either the rear discharge chute assembly
or the side chute deflector from the mower as
instructed previously.
- 2. Attach the mulching plug by first placing it over
the rear bolt in the side of the deck. Then slide
the notch in the top of the mulching plug around
the shoulder bolt on top of the deck. Slide the
notch in the side of the mulching plug around the
front bolt in side of the deck. Secure using two
wing nuts. See figure 5.
Rear
Discharge
Chute
Assembly
Ribs
Shoulder
Bolt
Rear
Panel
-discharge chute under the two tabs. See figure 6.
CONTROLS
REPLACING THE REAR DISCHARGE CHUTE
To replace the rear discharge chute assembly, pro
ceed as follows.
Slide the ribs on the discharge chute assembly under
the flange on rear panel as you insert the side of the
The edge of the discharge chute assembly goes
under the shoulder bolt on deck. Push down on the
chute assembly, and slide the bottom corner slots
over the bolts on side of deck.
Press down on the discharge chute assembly and
secure with wing nuts. Make certain wing nuts are
seated properly.
WARNING: Never operate your unit with
out either the side chute defiector,
A
muiching plug or entire rear discharge
chute and grass catcher assembiy in
piace.
Blade
Control
Handle
Drive
Clutch
Control
Recoil^ Shift
Starter
FIGURE 7.—Self-Propelled Model Shown
Lever
Throttle
Control
BLADE CDNTROL HANDLE
WARNING: This control mechanism is a
▲
The blade control handle is located on the upper han
dle of the mower. See figure 7. The blade control han
dle must be depressed; in order to operate the unit.
Release the blade control handle to stop the engine
and blade.
A
safety device. Never attempt to bypass
its operations.
WARNING: The blade will be rotating whenever the engine is running.
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